Orioles Want Young Shortstop For Wigginton
The Orioles figure to be major players on the trade market this summer, though Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com tweets that the team will not move Ty Wigginton unless they receive a young shortstop in return. Rosenthal calls it a "self-defeating stance," because no team will meet that demand.
Baseball America rated Baltimore's farm system as the ninth best in the game coming into the season, but basically all of their top shortstop prospects are in Single-A. They hope to have their shortstop of the future in Manny Machado, who they selected with the third overall pick in the draft a few weeks ago.
As for Wigginton, the 32-year-old is enjoying a fine season for the last place O's, hitting .274/.359/.487 with 13 homers while playing every day at primarily second base. He offers power and extreme versatility, capable of playing anywhere on the field except short, center, pitcher, and catcher. Every team in the league could use a guy like him.
Wigginton is just one of several Orioles' veterans that could be on the block, joining Kevin Millwood, Miguel Tejada, Cesar Izturis, Will Ohman, and Luke Scott. Reports indicate that the team is not looking to shed payroll, however.
Rockies In No Rush To Acquire Infielders
The Rockies are interested in Ty Wigginton and will monitor the market for infielders, but they will wait to see if the club remains in contention before dealing for infield help. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that for now, the Rockies will rely on Clint Barmes and Jonathan Herrera while Troy Tulowitzki's broken wrist heals. If the Rockies remain in contention after they play seven consecutive series against winning teams, they could pursue infield help.
If the 37-33 Rockies are contending in mid-July, Rosenthal suggests Wigginton and Dan Uggla as possible targets. Other infielders such as Adam Kennedy, Akinori Iwamura, Jayson Nix and Ryan Theriot could also draw interest from GM Dan O'Dowd and the rest of the Rockies front office. But at least for now, the team is in wait-and-see mode.
Olney On Dodgers, Lee, Yankees
One general manager told ESPN.com's Buster Olney that "it's becoming pretty clear" that the Dodgers won't be able to add pitching at the trade deadline. But Ed Price of AOL FanHouse heard from an MLB source that the Dodgers are scouting starters "aggressively" in preparation for possible trades. The Dodgers could use starting pitching given John Ely's last three starts and the injuries to Chad Billingsley and Carlos Monasterios, but executives appear to be divided on their ability to acquire it. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors:
- Rival teams are waiting for the Mariners to indicate that they're willing to deal Cliff Lee. One GM says it will be "a win for the Mariners" if and when they do trade Lee, since Jack Zduriencik will probably obtain better prospects than the ones he gave up for the left-hander in December.
- The Yankees are focused on improving their offense right now. Olney wonders if the Yanks could pursue a powerful infielder like Ty Wigginton. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports listed some easier-to-obtain infielders yesterday.
Rockies Notes: Uggla, Wigginton, Iannetta
Following Troy Tulowitzki's wrist injury, the Rockies are considering their next move, hoping to stay in contention in a competitive NL West. Troy Renck of the Denver Post has a few tidbits on their potential plans, in a series of tweets:
- After Tulowitzki got hurt, we heard that the Rockies might pursue infield depth. Renck writes that the club is "monitoring" the infield market, specifically naming Dan Uggla and Ty Wigginton as two players they'll watch. FOX Sports' Tracy Ringolsby also mentioned Wigginton as a possibility for Colorado earlier today.
- The Red Sox and Rangers could have interest in Chris Iannetta, with the Rangers focusing on him for this season and the Sox looking ahead to next year. Boston's current catcher, Victor Martinez, faces free agency at season's end, while Iannetta's contract runs through 2012.
- Prior to the trading deadline, the Rockies may also make minor deals involving players like Omar Quintanilla and Jay Payton. The Astros have been interested in Quintanilla before.
Rosenthal On Yankees, Oswalt, White Sox, Beltre
The Yankees are not actively looking for a utility infielder, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal names Willie Bloomquist, John McDonald and Jayson Nix as options the Yanks could consider should they decide that they want more experience than Kevin Russo and Ramiro Pena can offer. Here are the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:
- Adrian Beltre will almost certainly reject his player option after the season and re-enter free agency. He has been one of the game's best players this year, rating characteristically well on defense (according to UZR) and hitting .336/.371/.528.
- The Mariners won't necessarily get a first round pick in next year's draft if they hold onto Cliff Lee. First of all, a losing team could sign Lee (the first 15 picks are protected). Secondly, a team could sign Lee and a free agent who ranks higher under the Elias system. That would mean the Mariners get a supplementary rounder and a second rounder.
- If the Rangers are sold before the winter, they could be a potential landing spot for Carl Crawford, one executive suggested.
- Rosenthal hears that Astros owner Drayton McLane is not against the idea of trading Roy Oswalt to Texas, though the Rangers' ability to take on payroll and the pitcher's no-trade clause could prevent a deal from going through.
- The Marlins inquired on Matt Thornton back when the White Sox were sellers. Now, the White Sox would not consider dealing the left-hander.
- If White Sox GM Kenny Williams becomes a buyer, he may pursue a left-handed bat.
- The Mariners want major league or major league-ready hitters for Cliff Lee, but the Dodgers' best prospects are a few years away from the majors.
- The Rockies are interested in Ty Wigginton, according to Rosenthal's colleague, Tracy Ringolsby.
- The Rays will look for impact players at the trade deadline.
O’s Aren’t Looking To Shed Payroll
The Orioles may be 30 games under .500, but they’re not going to make deals for the sake of making deals. President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail told MLB.com’s Brittany Ghiroli that the club is open to making trades this summer and that’s a good thing, since opposing general managers regularly call to ask about his players.
"You can imagine the guys that are popular," MacPhail said. "Our young pitching is popular, but that's part of the cornerstone of what we are trying to do."
Jeremy Guthrie, who has a sub-4.00 ERA and won’t become a free agent until after the 2012 season, could be one of the appealing arms MacPhail is referring to. Some of Guthrie’s teammates – Ty Wigginton, Miguel Tejada, Kevin Millwood, Cesar Izturis, Will Ohman and Luke Scott – could be easier to obtain. But that doesn’t mean they’re going anywhere.
"We wouldn't [trade] just for the sake of moving payroll," MacPhail said.
If the Orioles determine that they can get something back for Millwood, he is “open" to the idea of switching teams, though he will not demand a trade. Last summer the O's traded Aubrey Huff, Gregg Zaun and George Sherrill away.
Third Base Options For The Twins
The Twins are a good team, but it's in spite of the production they're getting at the hot corner. Ron Gardenhire's third baseman have combined to hit just .213/.283/.280 with a pair of home runs. Nick Punto and Brendan Harris each have slugging percentages below .300, so the Twins recently called on top prospect Danny Valencia. That move gives the Twins more power than the Punto-Harris combination, but it doesn't assure them of anything. Let's take a look at the Twins' options as they try to get some offense from their third basemen:
- Hope that Valencia hits - Baseball America named Valencia an untouchable before last year's trade deadline, and ranked him sixth among Twins prospects heading into the year. At that point, Valencia had a promising bat, but was an inconsistent defender because of "subpar concentration and footwork." Valencia, 25, has hit .323/.364/.323 since arriving in the majors in early June, so his bat is no sure thing either.
- Call up the Red Sox - Ken Rosenthal reported over the weekend that the Twins' field staff would like to add Mike Lowell, though the front office has concerns about his durability. The $7.1MM remaining on Lowell's 2010 salary would also be an obstacle.
- Trade for an Oriole – The Twins could call the Orioles about Miguel Tejada (.676 OPS, $6MM salary) or Ty Wigginton (.854 OPS, $3.5MM salary). Tejada is playing third for the O's and Wigginton has spent most of his career at the hot corner and has recent experience there.
- Ask about LaRoche – There's no room for Andy LaRoche in Pittsburgh, now that the Pedro Alvarez era has begun. LaRoche has just a .232/.295/.316 line, but the 26-year-old posted a .731 OPS and played solid defense last year.
- Turn to the free agent market - Joe Crede defended well and hit 15 homers for the Twins in 2009. However, he had back, shoulder, hand, knee and hamstring issues last year and hasn't faced MLB pitching since.
- Hope that the Blue Jays keep slumping – There's no guarantee that the Blue Jays keep slumping or that they'll have interest in moving Jose Bautista if they do fall out of contention. Those 18 homers and the fact that Bautista doesn't become a free agent until after 2011 mean the Jays could ask for a highly-touted prospect or two. It wouldn't be the first time the Twins picked up a former Blue Jay with power to play third; the club added Tony Batista back in 2006.
Wigginton Not Looking For A Trade
Orioles infielder Ty Wigginton wants to remain with the Orioles if the alternative is receiving little playing time elsewhere, according to Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun. Wigginton told Connolly that he's not campaigning for a deal and enjoys playing in Baltimore:
"If I were to go somewhere, I'd want it to be somewhere I could contribute," the 32-year-old said. "But I love the city of Baltimore, and I love playing here for these fans."
The nine-year big league veteran will earn $3.5MM in 2010, the final year of his contract. Earlier this week, it was reported that Wigginton would be open to playing for the Mets if the O's become sellers. However, Wigginton "chuckled" at that story as both he and Millwood were responding to a question asking if they would have a problem playing for the Amazins.
Wigginton has started 52 of 57 games for the Orioles this season while playing at first, second, and third.
Discussion: The Orioles’ Next Move
When the Orioles fired manager Dave Trembley on Thursday, it represented the club's first major shake-up, and Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun hopes it won't be the last. Schmuck writes that, no matter who is managing the O's, changes need to be made to the team's roster. He advocates trading away many of the team's veterans and focusing on player development for the rest of the season.
In his blog post this morning, ESPN.com's Buster Olney quoted a talent evaluator who thought the Orioles might be better off hanging on to older players such as Kevin Millwood, Ty Wigginton, and Luke Scott, to help stabilize the clubhouse. And, as Schmuck notes, Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail doesn't seem ready to give up on the current roster quite yet:
"I'm still hopeful we can end up with a better record than we had last year,'' said MacPhail. "I still want to move that needle…. Obviously we've handicapped ourselves greatly, but I think getting our players healthy will help us in that regard."
Still, with no chance of contending this season in a stacked AL East, and prospects like Josh Bell and Jake Arrieta close to being ready, revamping the roster seems like the logical next step for the Orioles. Schmuck suggests that the ideal approach would be dealing the aforementioned veterans (plus Miguel Tejada), giving a few young players a shot in the majors, and aggressively diving into the free agent market this coming offseason. If you were running the Orioles, would you do things differently?
Olney’s Latest: Orioles, Diamondbacks, Delgado
In today's blog post at ESPN, Buster Olney says a question being asked by some is whether the Orioles' constant losing is infecting the team's great young core, most notably Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, and Matt Wieters. One evaluator said that even though players like Ty Wigginton, Kevin Millwood, and Luke Scott would have trade value at mid-season, the team might be better off holding onto them to help stabilize the young players.
I respectfully disagree, because those players are with the team now and it's obviously just not working. Some new blood might not be the worst thing in the world for Baltimore.
Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…
- Diamondbacks' manager A.J. Hinch pointed the finger directly at himself with regards to who to blame for the team's struggles. "This group hasn't responded that well to me," said Hinch. "I'm scratching and clawing, trying to find the right solution, but I'm not going to run from any accountability."
- The Angels have checked into the condition of Carlos Delgado, who is making his way back from hip surgery and could return in six weeks, if all goes well. They're looking for a Kendry Morales replacement, of course.